Chapter 13
The very next day, the media was in a frenzy. News outlets and
gossip columns were flooded with speculations about Adrian.
Blackwood’s abrupt departure from the gala.
“Adrian Blackwood leaves event without a word. Trouble in
paradise?”
“Leading lady abandoned. What made Adrian storm out?”
“Did Bianca Monroe get dumped?”
Paparazzi had been relentless. They snapped pictures of Bianca
left alone in their seats, looking frustrated and visibly upset.
Social media was buzzing with theories, some claiming it was a
lovers‘ quarrel, others suggesting Adrian had a secret someone
waiting for him elsewhere.
But Adrian didn’t care.
He hadn’t even glanced at his phone, which was now buried under the mess of broken glass and overturned furniture from last night. His house was a wreck, mirroring the chaos in his mind. He hadn’t slept. His body ached from the tension of waiting and from the sheer exhaustion of his emotions.
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Then came the frantic banging on his door.
“Adrian! Open the damn door!”
The sharp, relentless pounding echoed through the silent house.
Adrian sat on the couch, gripping his head while his body was
slumped forward. His knuckles were raw, his breath uneven.
He had destroyed everything he could get his hands on last
night–shattered glasses, broken furniture, even the picture
frame that once held a photo of him and Noelle. Pieces of it still
littered the floor.
Another hard slam against the door.
“Adrian, I swear to god-”
And so Adrian finally shot up and yanked the door open so
violently that Miles nearly stumbled forward.
“What thefuckis wrong with you?” Miles barked the second he
steadied himself, pushing past Adrian into the house. His eyes
instantly fell on the wreckage. Overturned chairs, broken glass
glinting under the morning light, looking like a mess that
screamed of trouble.
His jaw tightened. “Jesus Christ. What thehellhappened here?”
But Adrian didn’t answer. His fists were clenched at his sides
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while his face only showed a mad expression and something far
more dangerous.
Miles turned to him clearly confused and furious. “Do you even
understand what kind of shitstorm you’ve started?! The whole
goddamn media is on fire becauseAdrian Blackwood went
missing in action. You left Bianca sitting there looking like an
idiot, and now every tabloid is dragging your name through the
mud. Do you know how many calls I’ve had to take? How much
fuckingdamage controll’ve been doing since last night?!”
Adrian’s head snapped up, his amber eyes blazing. “And you
think I give adamnabout that right now?” His voice was low,
dangerous.
Miles scoffed, shoving a hand through his hair.
“Well,someonehas to! You’re out here throwing a fucking
tantrum while your entire career is hanging by a thread.
Bianca’s fuming, producers are pissed, and now everyone’s
wondering who the hell made you lose your goddamn mind.”
Adrian stepped closer with his chest rising and falling in a
barely restrained rage. His eyes, burned with fury while locked
onto Miles with an intensity that could set the whole house on
fire.
“I lost my goddamn mind the moment I saw Noelle’sengagement
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ringon Bianca’s fuckingfinger!” He answered in disbelief. He
raked a hand through his hair, gripping the strands as though
trying to keep himself from snapping completely. “Who the hell
gave her that?! Because I’mfucking sureit wasn’t me!”
The air between them crackled with tension. Miles, who had
been seething with his own frustration just moments ago,
suddenly stilled. His gaze flickered and scanned the wreckage
around him that showed the remnants of Adrian’s breakdown
sprawled across the room.
For the first time since storming in, Miles saw it.
This wasn’t just some reckless outburst. This wasn’t Adrian
acting like a spoiled celebrity caught in some scandal.
This was a man on the edge oflosing everything.
Miles exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand over his face. “Shit,” he
muttered under his breath. His voice lowered as the anger
shifted into something more controlled. “So where’s Noelle?”
Adrian’s throat tightened. His jaw worked as he tried to
swallow the lump forming, but the words still came out hoarse,
almost strangled.
“That’s what I’m trying to find out.” His hands curled into fists at his sides, nails digging into his palms. “Last night, when I rushed
Chapter 13
back home, she was already gone. The whole house was dark,
the door was unlocked, Miles.” His voice cracked slightly, but he
forced himself to keep talking. “All her stuff… everything that
was hers, she took them. She didn’t leave a damn note. No text.
Nothing.” He let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “She even left her
fucking phone behind.”
Miles let out a long breath as his brows knitted together in
realization.
Noelle didn’t just leave.
She didn’t want to be found.
And that realization hit Miles like a freight train.
“Shit,” he muttered, rubbing a hand down his face before fixing
Adrian with a sharp look. “Have you even been coming home
since that photoshoot with Bianca?” His voice was laced with
something more than suspicion–it was certainty.
Adrian’s jaw tightened. “That’s the thing,” he muttered. “I
haven’t been coming home. I was too busy. Too fucking tired to
drive back.”
Miles let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. “Then you forgot
about the wedding.”
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Adrian flinched as his expression twisted while his jaw
clenched so tightly it ached. He ran a hand over his face as
frustration mounted with every second. His mind was already
in shambles, and Miles‘ words were only making it worse.
“I didn’t forget,” Adrian snapped, but the weight of his own lie
pressed down on him almost instantly. He inhaled sharply,
exhaling through gritted teeth. “Fuck. Maybe I did.”
Miles let out a harsh chuckle, but there was no humor in it.
“Then what the hell did you expect, Adrian? You basically
disappeared on her. You left her waiting, probably watching
you all over the goddamn news with Bianca by your side while
she sat here, wondering where she stood in your life.”
Adrian flinched. He hated that. He hated that it sounded exactly
like something Noelle would do–stay silent, endure it, and then
quietly walk away.
Because she never fought for something that wasn’t truly hers.
And that’s what he had made her feel.
Like she wasn’t his..
Adrian’s hands curled into fists while his pulse thundered in his
ears. “I didn’t choose Bianca.” His voice was hoarse, as if he was
convincing himself more than anyone else. “I never fucking
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chose her.”
Miles scoffed, stepping closer. “Then tell me, Adrian, who did
you choose?” His voice was cold and cutting. “Because from
where I’m standing, it sure as hellwasn’t Noelle.”
Adrian’s fists clenched, his jaw ticking. But before he could
respond, Miles pressed on, his tone dripping with bitter
mockery.
“Why are you even looking for her now?” He tilted his head,
eyes narrowing. “Didn’t you already make up your mind? Didn’t
you plan to break things off the moment Bianca waltzed back
into your life?” He scoffed again, shaking his head in disbelief.
“So let her go. Give that damn ring, whatever it means to you
now, to Bianca and get on with it. Propose to her instead. Isn’t
that what you wanted?”
A dangerous silence settled between them.
Adrian’s breathing was ragged while his heart keptslamming
against his ribs. The weight of Miles‘ words suffocated him.
Because deep down, he knew. He had planned to leave Noelle.
Had convinced himself it was the right thing. That Bianca was
what he wanted, what he should have.
But the second Noelle left him….
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The second he realized she was gone for good.
Something inside himsnapped.
His fingers trembled at his sides. His chest felt like it was caving
- in.
Then, in one swift move, he grabbed the nearest object and
hurled it across the room. It shattered against the wall with a
deafening crash as shards flew in every direction.
But Miles didn’t even flinch.
Adrian turned to him, his amber eyes burned darkand
unhinged. “I CAN’T let her go.” He said roughly.“I don’t give a
fuck what I planned before. I don’t care what you think. I
WANT HER BACK”
Miles let out a shallow breath, shaking his head as if he had
already expected this.
